Chapter 21: Challenge Right
A/N: Lets do this. And this weekend, because I'm uploading on a Friday (You can thank RageOfPhoenix for that, shout out to you), if I get FIFTEEN (it's higher because it's a shorter weekend) reviews, you'll get chapter 22!
Night-Castle
"The girl holding 10 keys... and the girl holding 2 keys." Giving an almost evil smile, the head night rants on. "The 12 keys are complete! Eclipse will activate completely! Zeref. Zeref. ZEREF, ZEREF! FufufuhahahaHAHAHAHAHAHAAAHA!"
-x-
Another day comes, and as soon as Natsu wakes up he sees everyone in the infirmary surrounding his bed.
"A-ah..." He sighs, slipping from the sheets, flinching slightly as he uses his hand for balance. I won't be able to use this hand for a while, damn weakness... He clenches and clenches his fist before sneaking out of the room. Heading to the Honey Bone lodge, he soon finds Yukino sleeping on one of the couches. Found you!
Shaking her shoulder slightly, he gets the girl up. Opening her heavy lids, the former Sabertooth mage rubs her eyes before looking into the smiling face of the pinkette.
"KYAH!" Natsu soon flies into the bar counter, nose reddens from the other punching him into the face. Waking up all the way, she looks in shock and horror at what she had done. "Oh, I-I'm sorry, Natsu-san! I thought I was in... my room."
"It's okay, really should've learned not to wake a girl up by now." Seeing her grim expression, Natsu soon sits beside the whitette, a solemn smile on his face. "Listen, about the bet I made with your master, you don't have to..."
"I want to." She says firmly, the abandoned tiger looking at him with a Fairy's determination. "They would've gotten rid of me anyways, and I'm glad to be in such a... great guild now." He pats her on the shoulder, his famous smile spread across his lips.
"Glad to have you here, Yukino."
-x-
"The Grand Magic Games have finally entered the middle portion of the competition, here on the third day." Chapati begins.
"What kind of fierce dramas will we be able to see today?" Yajima adds on.
"Today's guest is Lahar-san from the magic council."
"Its been a while."
"Lahar-san, your position is... captain of the custody enforcement squad, is it?"
"Indeed... Any impropriety in the games will not be allowed." Out in the crowd, Doranbolt complains about being forced to come to the games.
"The third days competition is Pandemonium. There will be one participant from each guild."
Fairy Tail A; Erza Scarlet.
Fairy Tail B; Laxus Dreyar
Mermaid Heel; Millianna
Raven Tail; Obra
Blue Pegasus; Hibiki Lates
Sabertooth; Orga Nanagear
Lamia Scale; Jura Neekis
Quatro Puppy; Novally
"Yesterday was my day off... My apologies." Pumpkin-guy begins. "Now, I'll explain the rules of Pandemonium." After he says this, in the middle of the stadium appears a Gothic castle, being the center of everyone's attention at its sheer size and architecture. "The temple where evil monsters nest..." pumpkin introduces,"Pandemonium."
"Wow." Laxus says indifferently.
"Where monsters nest, you say?" Jura questions.
"That's the setting. Pumpkin. Yup. Within the temple there are 100 monsters... Well, they're called that, but they're magical tools that we've created. They won't attack any of you in the audience or anything like that, so relax. The monsters are divided into 5 levels of battle power: D, C, B, A, S. The specifics are like this;
S x 1
A x 4
B x 15
C x 30
D x 50
Incidentally... in regards to the kind of strength that D-Class monsters have..." It shows a clip of such a monster tearing through the building, making everyone stare in awe and fear. "Ones like that, and even stronger than that... The place where there are 100 of them lurking around, that is Pandemonium. Pumpkin. As the class goes up, please note that the battle power goes up exponentially. The S-class monster has strength such that even one of the 10 wizard saints can't be guaranteed to defeat it." This catches Jura's attention, as a wizard saint in this challenge, he contemplates just how strong it must be. "In order, each of you will take turns selecting a number of monsters to fight with. This is called your 'challenge right'. For example, if one chooses '3' then 3 monsters will appear within the temple. If one succeeds in defeating the 3 the competitor gets 3 points. Then, the next competitor may exercise their 'challenge right' among the 97 remaining monsters. This will continue until 0 monsters remain, or everyone's magical power reaches 0... at which point the competition will end."
"It's like a counting game, huh." Millianna points out, to which Pumpkin replies;
"Exactly. Situational judgment becomes quite important. However, like I said before, the monsters have ranks. So be it 1 monster or 5 monsters that you choose with your challenge right, it's a system where the monsters appear randomly."
"In other words, some sort of battle strategy to avoid the S-Ranked monsters is necessary, huh..."
"If it's random, that sort of strategy wouldn't work, then."
"No... with probability theory and my archive... a strategy will work to some extent."
"Points are given for the number of defeated monsters, with no regard to the monsters rank. Once you've entered the temple, you will be unable to withdraw until you've won."
"What happens if you go down inside the temple?"
"Then the number of points you've earned up til then will be as it is. The number of victories for that turn itself will be counted as 0, and you'll exit like that. So with that, please draw your lots, everyone." Drawing hers, Erza gets one she doesn't look to gleeful on.
"Number 1."
"Damn. Whatever these fools don't get, I will." Laxus sighs, seeing as he got the lowest number; 8...
"I was thinking this competition would all come down to the luck of the draw..." Erza speaks up, catching the pumpkins interest.
"The luck of the draw? No... No... How should I put this? It's a game where maintaining your pace and situational judgment are more important than just the order of battle..."
"No... with this, it's no longer a game." The red head gives a small smile, catching the pumpkin off-guard with her confusing words. Then, standing, with determination in her eyes and composure, she announces; "All 100 will be my opponents. My challenge right will be 100."
Everyone stares completely frozen in shock, silenced by the confidence in her words, and the words themselves. The other people in the challenge more shocked than everyone else.
"THAT... That's impossible! I's not set up so that one person could possibly defeat them all!"
"I don't care." Erza's reply is simple, and she walks towards the temple in a stride of confidence.
(Levy's Diary)
The Grand Magic Games, Day 3, Pandemonium. I think I'll never forget the events of this day. As she becomes covered with wounds, the Fairy that should have fallen to Earth dances. Here is TITANIA.
Finishing the last monster, she holds her blade after her final swing, blood coating her body, clothes torn. Everyone cheers for the victor. Doranbolt shedding tears, the speakers completely shocked. And she raises her blade up to the sky in a show of victory.
Almost like... A scarlet flower, blooming with pride.
"UN...UN...UNBELIEVABLE! SOMEHOW...BY A SINGLE PERSON...ALL 100 MONSTERS HAVE BEEN DEFEATED! IS THIS THE TRUE STRENGTH OF THE FAMED QUEEN OF THE FAIRY'S FROM 7 YEARS AGO!? FAIRY TAIL A'S ERZA SCARLET DOMINATES! A MASSIVE VICTORY THAT BROOKS NO COMPLAINTS!" The crowd begins to cheer, awestruck at the sheer power shown by the mage. Remembering the days her name was spread across Fiore; Titania, Queen of the Fairies. "The huge applause has yet to stop!"
"I give up." Yajima states, putting his hand to his forehead in disbelief.
"I don't have any words..." Lahar adds on with a sigh. Doranbolt shedding tears of happiness at the sudden events. Running out into the field comes Fairy Tail team A-plus Wendy, the fill-in for Elfman.
"As expected, amazing..."
"I was so touched..."
"I... my chest is about to burst..."
"Oi, oi..." She turns to her teammates, and stares at Jellal as he puts a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We haven't won yet, you know." She smiles, even with blood and cuts covering her face and body.
"There's no way to top her, huh." Cana speaks up, drinking a bottle of alcohol that seemed to come from nowhere.
"AS EXPECTED! Er-chan's the strongest!"
"That's Ichiya-san's girlfriend for you..."
"Reckless takes on a whole new meaning, after seeing that..."
"Magnificent." Is the only thing Jura manages to say.
"I don't like this..." Orga adds from beside the Raven Tail member. The cheers don't slow as Fairy Tail itself gets heated up.
"Interesting... So they're not all just talk, huh, Fairy Tail..." Minerva, Jiemma's daughter, speaks from the sidelines.
"Erza Scarlet... And Jellal. You will fall by my blade..."
"Pandemonium has been completely suppressed!" Putting her fist up, with a smile of victory, Erza lets Chapati continue. "Fairy Tail A earns 10 points! Eh... discussion had concluded that the remaining 7 teams must finish establishing a rank order. It's a little banal, but we've prepared a simple game."
"Magic power finder. MPF, pump-kii. When the device is struck with magical power, that power is represented numerically. Those numerical values will be used to establish ranking. We'll continue with the order that was determined previously, pumpkin."
"Then it starts with me! Here I go!" Millianna throws of her cloak, collects magic around her hands. "KITTEN BLAST!" She announces, as it spirals towards the machine, slamming into it so it reads;
365
"We don't know if that number is high or not without any basis for comparison, huh." Chapati comments.
"Hmm."
"That device is used in our rune knight training as well." Lahar speaks up, before adding on, "That's a high number. It's at a level sufficient to become a squad captain."
"Millianna's real strength isn't power..."
"This is probably rather unfavorable..." The Mermaid Heel members look down to their teammate.
"Next up is Quatro Puppy's Novally."
124
"The value is 124... Kinda low, huh?"
"It's my turn." Hibiki fixes his tie and steps forward.
"This is rather tough for Hibiki, who's a knowledge type."
"If only I had gone out..." The other two trimen say.
"Believe in your friend, you guys!" Ichiya sparkles from beside them, having been the switch out with Jenny.
95
"Ahhh... What a world..." Hibiki falls in shame at his number.
"This is what we get for believing in him..."
"Men~"
"Next up is Raven Tail's Obra."
"What kind of magic does he use?" Wendy says, Fairy Tail silent as he walks up. The masked man doesn't make a word, he just spreads his arms out, and his odd, black little demon launches from him, slamming his shoulder into the device.
4
"WHA!"
"Is he messing with us!?"
"This is somewhat unfortunate, but..." The pumpkin turns his head to see a drunk participant wearing his hat. "There are no re-do's pumpkin."
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING, OBRA! Are you stupid!?"
"Silence, Flare." Alexei speaks up, making the other girl tremble. "His magic can't be shown in front of people."
"He's a guy that has to be forced to get serious."
"Kukuku..."
"The current rankings are like this;"
1. Millianna-365
2. Novally-124
3. Hibiki-95
4. Obra-4
"I did it! I'm number one! Meow~"
"Orga's stepping in! The applause is amazing!" The man lifts his fist, before putting both hands out and preparing his magic. Black lighting traces through his fingers before...
"120 Mm Black Lightning Cannon!" It hits, the device almost being destroyed by the sheer power.
3825
"THREE... three... thousand... TEN TIMES MY SCORE!?"
"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" Gray jumps, eyes round, a cold sweat encasing his body.
Even in our squad, that kind of score has never been seen before! Lahar stares in complete shock, as Laxus grins, eyes focused on the other lightning user.
"Strongest strongest number 1!" Orga steals the mic and begins singing.
"Um... that's enough singing. Pumpkin."
"Well... we look forward to seeing whether Jura, one of the ten wizard saints, can surpass this number..."
"Jura will win."
"That goes without saying." Lyon says to the worried Chelia. "My concern lies elsewhere."
"Is it alright if I do it seriously."
"Of course. Pumpkin." At the okay, Jura puts his hands together as if in prayer, before an explosion of light occurs around the MPF.
"MEIDOUFYGAKU!" The ground breaks and crumbles under its strength.
8544
"Old man, that's too much, isn't it!?"
"Wait... NATSU'S A HIGHER WIZARD SAINT THAN HIM!"
"Huh?" Orga turns in shock to see a score clearing his own.
"As expected... to put it simply." Erza smiles as she sees the score.
"This is the overwhelming power befitting one that carries the title of one of the 10 wizard saints." Lyon finishes without hearing the scarlet mage.
"This... this is a new record for MPF!" Jura does a bow of respect, and their guild master joins in the cheering, "The title of wizard saint isn't just for show!"
"Amazing..." Makarov stares wide-eyed. "He'd be an even match for Gildarts..."
"Jeez..." Mavis gives a small smile. "Don't forget that the one carrying your blood is right here." As she says this, Laxus walks out to face the MPF.
"The last challenger is Fairy Tail B's Laxus Dreyar. It must be tough to follow up Jura... lets have him try his best."
"Are they looking down on his power?"
"You got this!"
"Lets aim for at least 2nd place."
"Well then..." He gives a confident smirk. "I'm going to strike." He stands still for a moment, and electricity sparks around him. He opens one eye and gives Natsu a look. Lets see just how good this is...
"Thunder's Unleashed Might..." He begins a chant foreign to the Fairy Tail members, and the dragons slayers look to Natsu, having a small grasp on the situation. He raises his hand up, lightning gathering all around it. "NIGHT'S KNIFE!" He swings his hand down, and the stadium is blinded, no one seeing the move as they are forced to close their eyes. But when they open them they are shocked to see...
9999
"Wha... What is this?" Chapati sweats nervously at the sight. The people who have yet to open their eyes doing so. "The MPF broke... He maxed out!"
"Wha... What is this guild..." Lahar finally manages to get out. Fairy Tail laughing and clapping for their comrade.
"It's a 1-2 finish for the competition portion! Nobody can stop Fairy Tail now!" Laxus simply raises a fist into the air, looking at Natsu as the two share a smirk.
"Alexei-sama." Nullpudding speaks up. "Here are the match-ups for the battle portion." He passes the masked man the slip of paper.
"These pairings... The administration is quite creative. Shall we begin?" The Raven Tail members all give their form of a grin as the team captain speaks. "For the sake of our real objective?"
A/N: You guys don't know what Laxus did, and you learn more about it later on, but just to give you a head's-up, it's a dragon slayer thing that was Natsu's invention. I LOVE YOU ALL, YOU'RE SO AMAZA~! Til next time, see ya!
Anyway, I realize that I want to do something more for you, my amazing followers, reviewers, and favorite-ers. And so, from now on I'll respond to all reviews, but here's a list of everyone who has reviewed thus far! (The people with the -*- sign next to their names are followers, and the people with the -|- sign are favorite-ers)
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